D&D 1E Holdover rules from 1e/2e

[delericho]

4 hours, last time I did it with players completely new to RPGs. It was a real eye-opener.

In the future, I plan to just hand them the "starting package" from the PHB.

Yep. I strongly recommend having a stock of pregenerated characters for new players to use. Have a range of races and classes available, and give them nice, vibrant characters that are easy to play and, above all, fun.

Get them playing, then get them interested in the character creation process.

 

[Corinth]

No holdovers, neither used as the DM nor accepted as a player.

 

[S'mon]

I use Basic D&D's 2d6 Morale rules, Companion D&D's War Machine mass battle rules, and various stuff from 1e AD&D including the Monster Manual 2 d8/d12 encounter tables (much better than 3e or even the 1e DMG %s IMO).

 

[Quasqueton]

Players I deal with feel a need to understand the rules of the game they're playing.

And as a Player and DM, I prefer/appreciate Players who understand the rules of the game they're playing.

But just as a newbie wizard doesn't need to fully understand the grapple rules, or the turning rules, or the tracking rules, neither does he need to fully understand 40+ spells if he's only going to have [at most] 6 [1st-level] spells in his spellbook.

A newbie fighter doesn't need to fully understand every feat in the book(s).

A newbie rogue doesn't need to fully understand every skill in the book(s).

Quasqueton

 

[werk]

I use Basic D&D's 2d6 Morale rules, Companion D&D's War Machine mass battle rules, and various stuff from 1e AD&D including the Monster Manual 2 d8/d12 encounter tables (much better than 3e or even the 1e DMG %s IMO).

I do tend to roll a d12 to see NPC initial reaction to PC, adjusted using CHR bonuses. I think that's from an older version. I gotta use that d12 for something...

 

[Staffan]

I don't have any holdover rules I can think of at the moment, at least not for "general" D&D. In the Dark Sun conversion I'm kinda-sorta working on (it's been on the back burner for quite a while now) I made quite a few changes compared to the athas.org version, in order to make things work more like they did in 2nd ed: spheres for clerics and druids (instead of 3e-style cleric domains), templars have access to lots of spells but fewer spells/day (instead of that strange divine-sorcerer thing athas.org wanted to make them into), defilers are a separate class from preservers, and some things like that.

 

[dcollins]

A newbie fighter doesn't need to fully understand every feat in the book(s). A newbie rogue doesn't need to fully understand every skill in the book(s).

I've tried and I've failed to put that in practice. Players get irritated (or even angry) with me if I try to push them in that direction during character generation (making non-fully-informed choices).

 

[Quasqueton]

I've tried and I've failed to put that in practice. Players get irritated (or even angry) with me if I try to push them in that direction during character generation (making non-fully-informed choices).

I can understand that to a point. I like to know as much as possible about the game before I play. But if I choose do do the extensive research and memorizing, it is my choice and I can't say it's the game's/DM's fault. If it takes me 4 weeks to decide on some choices, then I should be slapped on the head and told to lighten up.

If I learn to pilot a plane so that I can choose the best seat in the passenger cabin, that does not mean that plane travel is complicated.

You said:

For new players with Wizards, I'd use the 1st Ed. starting spellbook tables, instead of trying to communicate all the options for starting spells to the new player.

This says to me that you want to use random determination to pick spells for newbie wizards because that is easier than "trying to communicate all the options".

That's like saying you randomly determine where a passenger sits because it is easier than teaching them how to pilot a plane. All they really need to know can be found on the interior diagram -- there's first class, coach, window or aisle; maybe a couple other options, but they don't need to know how to calculate speed by altitude.

Quasqueton

 

[Majoru Oakheart]

You said:
This says to me that you want to use random determination to pick spells for newbie wizards because that is easier than "trying to communicate all the options".

That's like saying you randomly determine where a passenger sits because it is easier than teaching them how to pilot a plane. All they really need to know can be found on the interior diagram -- there's first class, coach, window or aisle; maybe a couple other options, but they don't need to know how to calculate speed by altitude.

No, your analogy is flawed. It's like knowing the layout of the plane. You need to know that seat 7C is a window seat before you choose it, or that it's too close to the engine and too loud. You also need to know that a really large woman is sitting over there and not to sit beside her because you'll have no room and that the entire back of the plane will be noisy due to a baby that won't stop crying.

It's just a fact of life that some people want to know that information before they choose a seat. Given, in this situation, it is impossible to know ALL of that before you get a seat. In D&D though, you CAN read through ALL the first level spells before choosing them. You will likely choose better spells because of it as well.

Assigning them random spells is a lot like most airlines assigning you a seat when you arrive with only the choice of a preference between window and aisle. You might end up with a good seat, you might not.

 

[Darmanicus]

Because the original disruption weapon was the Mace of Disruption. It only came as a mace; you couldn't have (for example) a glaive-guisarme of disruption, because it wasn't in the book.

More broadly, it might be because disruption is a weapon power that seems particularly suited to clerics, and clerics were typically limited to bludgeoning weapons.

But my point is we're 3.X ed and it's STILL bludgeoning only yet Clerics can use what the hell they like nowadays to smite the infidels!!!!